Charlestown School Updates
For members of our learning community - January 20th, 2017
Progress Reports Issued Today
Practicing skills at home has a significant impact on student learning, particularly in reading and math. Our younger students benefit greatly from daily home practice with math facts and sight words. Older students benefit from writing at home along with practicing math facts. We encourage all students to engage in nightly reading. We see a positive impact on progress with the students who continually practice skills at home.
2nd Graders practicing their versions of the Three Little Pigs
Mrs. Iredale co-teaching with Señora Lawing and sharing her Monster drawing and writing using ChatterPix
Kindergarten snow themed writing, drawing and math
Budget Update
Using projected enrollment numbers for 2017-2018, we will have the following classes next year:
Kindergarten - 3 classes
1st Grade - 3 classes
2nd Grade - 2 classes
3rd Grade - 3 classes
4th Grade - 3 classes.
Currently we anticipate the following additional certified staff, but this could change:
1.0 School Nurse
1.0 PE/Health Teacher
2.0 Reading Specialist and Consultant
1.0 Math Specialist
.5 Art (2.5 days)
.5 Music (2.5 days)
.8 Spanish (4 days)
.9 Library (4.5 days)
.2 Social Worker (1 day)
.6 Psychologist (3 days)
.8 Speech
.6 Occupational Therapist
At this time, we anticipate that the increase in health insurance will be substantial with a projected increase of 18% (and projections range as high as 36%). At 18%, the increase is $914,901. The Fiscal Year 2018 budget calls for an increase in 3.21% in the General Fund Budget and a 3.39% increase in the member town contributions.
Parents are always invited to attend public School Committee Meetings to learn more about the budget. These meetings are held bi-monthly on Tuesday evenings at Chariho High School.
Below are the dates for the upcoming budget meetings, hearings and vote.
February 7: FY18 Budget approval during School Committee meeting
March 7: Public hearing on FY18 Budget during Annual Regional School District Meeting
March 14: FY18 Budget adoption during School Committee meeting
April 11: All-day referendum on adopted FY18 Budget
You can also review public budget documents by clicking think:
https://www.chariho.k12.ri.us/budget
Mr. Ricci will be joining our March PTO meeting to discuss the budget.
This will take place on Tuesday, March 7th at 6:00 pm.
Please feel free to contact me if you have questions about the budget.
Gr. 4 NAEP Testing
Each 4th grader completes either a math or reading assessment and some students take the assessment using a tablet provided by NAEP. The assessment takes about 90 to 120 minutes for most students. The results are completely confidential (in accordance with the Confidential Information Protection provisions of Title V, Subtitle A, Public Law 107-347). The assessment also asks students questions about their daily routine and their educational experiences. Student responses are anonymous, and they provide context and meaning to the assessment results.
Parents can visit http://nces.ed.gov/nationsreportcard/about/booklets.asp to review sample questions.
The information collected is used for statistical purposes only.
- Your child’s grades will not be affected.
- Students may be excused for any reason, are not required to complete the assessment, and may skip any question.
- While the assessment is voluntary, NAEP depends on student participation to help policymakers improve education. However, if you do not want your child to participate, please notify me in writing by February 10, 2016
Winter Recess Procedures...when we have snow...
We have the students without waterproof boots either borrow boots from the clinic or remain on the paved areas near the playground.
Students who wear full snow gear (boots, snow pants, jacket, gloves) can play actively in the snow. They are very exited when they can play, roll and build with friends in the snow!!! It is so fun for them to play in the snow with their classmates!
Below is a list of what your child needs to actively play in the snow. Please email us if you need assistance with getting some gently used items. We always appreciate donations of these items as well and will pass them along to student in need.
Snow Play Items:
Waterproof Snow Boots
Snow Pants
Warm Jacket
Snow Gloves
Hat
Reusable bag to keep all items in the classroom. Cloth shopping bags with handles work great!
Charlestown School is Ranked the #1 Elementary School in Rhode Island
Elementary schools are ranked by their StartClass Rating, which includes the following components:
- Exam Passing Rates: This includes math proficiency rates and reading and language arts proficiency rates over the last three years.
- School Environment: The school environment score consists of factors such as the student-teacher ratio, teacher experience and teacher absence rate.
- Disciplinary Actions: This takes into account the school’s retention rate, in-school suspension rate and out-of-school suspension rate
To see the article and learn about the top school in each state, click this link:
http://public-schools.startclass.com/stories/19061/top-elementary-schools#40-Rhode-Island
PTO Updates
The Annual PTO Spaghetti Supper will be held on Friday, January 27th. We will invite 4th graders to assist as servers for the evening and also need adult volunteers.
F.L.A.S.H. Is being planned for March 7- April 11. We will be looking for parents and community members to teach classes and help support coordination and supervision.
Please email Mindy Trudel if you're interested in teaching a class.
Look for class information that will be sent home with students later this month.
A Parents Night Out with wine tasting is being planned for March 10th at Wood River Golf. The PTO is also coordinating a karate event for children to attend on the same evening.
Most of our students and staff members are excited for the Patriots...and a few for the Steelers!
Dental Screenings on January 26th
Upcoming Events:
Thurs. Jan. 26th - Dental Screenings
Fri. Jan. 27th - PTO Spaghetti Supper
Fri. Feb. 3rd - PTO Sponsored Kaleidoscope Theatre Assemblies
Tues. Feb. 7th - PTO Meeting - 6:00 pm in the Art Room - Childcare provided
School Calendars for 16-17 and 17-18
http://www.chariho.k12.ri.us/sites/default/files/2016-17_chariho_school_calendar.pdf
The School Committee recently approved the school calendar for 2017-2018: